House Panel Reviews VA Patient Wait Times

The House Veterans’
Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations recently held a
hearing on the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) policies on
scheduling and measuring patient wait times. A report by the U.S.
Government Accountability Office (GAO) identified inconsistencies in
patient wait times as reported by the VA, including unreliable
information and varying degrees of policy implementation.

The lengthy scheduling process and wait times have been a
long-standing problem within the VHA, with the GAO reporting on the
issue for more a decade. Most recently (December 2012), GAO also found
that reported wait times for outpatient medical appointment were
unreliable. In an April 2012 report, the Veterans Affairs Office of
Inspector General found that the Veterans’ Health Administration
(VHA) does not have a reliable and accurate method for determining
whether they are providing patients timely access to mental health care.
First-time patients often wait more than 14 days beyond their desired
date of care for treatment appointments and it takes an average of 50
days for mental health patients to get a meeting with a behavioral
counselor.